Guaranteed to Hit the Rim
by animekraze
Summary: It's scary to make that shot, because you never know if you'll get it or miss it. And when you do make that successful shot, what are the chances of that ball coming back to you or landing in someone elses hands? SoulxMakaxChrona


**Considering how dramaticy Soul Eater!Anime is getting, I figured I could ease up some tensions with some romance. Or attempts at romance. Same thing. **

**This is my first attempt at some SoulxMaka. Well, subtleties of it, because that's how I work. I don't usually get any deeper until I'm more comfortable with the pairing. **

**I figure that in order to get more comfortable with SoulxMaka, I'll do a bit of transitioning. Let's get some things straight. This story WILL end with SoulxMaka, there's no doubt for that. HOWEVER, there will be some twists and turns throughout. **

**Disclaimer: Like I need a lawsuit at my age.**

_**(SE)**_

Soul followed Maka down the stairs and to the usual door. He noticed, as usual, her much too cheerful face as she rapped the door with her knuckles and stood waiting with a perkiness he's never really seen in her. He's known Maka since the beginning, but she never really looked his way. Not in the way he wished she did.

The door slowly opened and revealed a sullen Chrona. "Maka," the kid's expression lightens up and the door opens all the way.

"Are you ready, Chrona?" Maka asks the usual question with her usual cheery voice.

"Mm, yeah." Chrona nods, stepping out of the room and closing the door.

Maka grabs Chrona's hand and drags the kid back up the steps with Soul dragging his own feet behind them.

And this is how the mornings usually start.

* * *

Soul leans on his right arm, head resting on his biceps. He fingers his white hair, feeling the texture of the hair follicles between his fingers.

Maka is helping Chrona through the lesson, Ms. Marie tapping the board with her pointer.

"Here, we're on this page."

"Oh…"

Soul pokes his unopened book and looks up at Maka. The last thing he wants is for her to nag him into at least opening his book. Yet, he wants to see her annoyed face when he pretends to sleep during her boring lectures.

He wants her to pay attention to him for once.

* * *

Soul sits across Black Star again, having to deal with flying pieces of half chewed food (to the dismay of Tsubaki). He eats politely, taking normal sized bites, chewing, swallowing, and repeats.

Next to Black Star is Kid who, when not yelling at Black Star to at least eat with his mouth closed, was attempting to devour his lunch in a symmetrical way (to the dismay of Liz and to the pleasure of Patty who takes great amusement from his pain). He held in his hands two spoons, the tray in front of him holding a cold piece of chicken.

"Kid, you do know you can't really eat meat without a knife and a fork."

"Blasphemy," Kid replies, eyes spinning. "A fork and a knife aren't symmetrical, and all the forks' teeth are bent by a fifth of a millimeter!" He suddenly holds out the spoons over a few of the lights above casting two spoon shaped shadows over his face. "These spoons…are my only saviors."

"Wow." Is all Soul can really say. "Why not just eat with your fingers?"

Kid glares at Soul for a moment before shifting his eyes to Black Star.

"I take it back, I take it back." Soul sighs, continuing to eat.

Soul is sitting next to Chrona (again), just one person away from Maka.

Maka glances at Chrona. "Chrona, is it good?"

"Y-Yeah…" Chrona nods with a very small smile.

"That's good." Maka smiles brightly.

It takes all of Soul's will power NOT to roll his eyes.

"What."

"What?"

"That face."

"What face?"

"That face you always make when it seems like you're, I dunno, annoyed by something."

"I'm not annoyed." Soul replies irritably.

"What's wrong? You've been acting like this all day."

"Now you notice," Soul whispers with the utensil in his mouth.

"What do you mean?"

"Ready for pregnancy? I think you'll be a great mother, always doting and caring and hovering over people."

"I do NOT hover." Maka becomes visibly irritated, eyes darkening, confused.

"Yes you do." Soul dangles his fork, holding only the tips of the handle with his fingers. He swings it back and forth like a pendulum. "I'm surprised Chrona hasn't blown a gasket yet."

"Soul," Maka lowers her head, eyes glaring at him dangerously. "What…is wrong with you?" she asks darkly.

Soul feels like laughing, just almost. The first time during the day she actually acknowledges him and he's greeted with such an ugly face. "Never mind."

"What?"

"Never. Mind."

* * *

"What the hell was that?!" Black Star suddenly comments. His arms stretched up and over his hands before clasping behind his head.

"Who knows," Tsubaki walks next to Black Star, "Soul never says anything like that…I feel bad for Chrona, having to be in the middle of all that."

"It didn't help that that Ragnarok freak suddenly came out and made it worse." Liz sighed.

"Get a room, a room!" Patti repeated cheerfully, twirling as she giggled.

"Hey, where is Chrona?" Kid asked, noticing that Chrona, who was hovering from behind, had suddenly disappeared.

"…Holy crap, what is that kid, the great Houdini?" Liz turns in shock.

"Great WHO-dini is right." Black Star laughs.

"No, Black Star, HOUdini was a famous magician." Tsubaki corrected him patiently.

"WHOA!" Black Star gaped.

"Everyone, back on topic, please?"

"I think Chrona is going back to his room." Tsubaki smiled. "Since he seemed really tired."

"Wait, he?"

Tsubaki cocked her head to one side. "Isn't Chrona a boy?"

"I thought Chrona was a girl." Kid placed his hands on his hips.

"No way, kid's too flat chested to be a girl." Liz concluded, resting an arm on Kid's shoulder.

"If you're going to do that, do it symmetrically!" Kid cried out.

"That's strange," Tsubaki tapped a finger to her chin, "I've always thought Chrona was a boy. He's always blushing around other girls, his voice is pretty low, and he's pretty tall…"

"I know one way to find out!" Black Star raised a hand.

"NO!"

"Aw…"

* * *

Soul couldn't go back to that apartment, especially with what happened during lunch. He found himself in front of that dreaded metal door. And while he was standing in front of the door all his emotions seemed to swell and well inside of him. It was overflowing, bursting; explosions were occurring as morbid images of him gaining Maka's affection flooded his mind.

Soul snapped out of his trance as he noticed his hand knocking on the metal door.

It took a few moments before he heard Chrona's voice.

"Maka?"

Soul paused for a long second, weighing his options. Either he could try to scare Chrona away from Maka or pretend he didn't knock and walk way.

"No, it's Soul." He hated himself. A lot.

"Soul…?" the door opened to reveal a somewhat exhausted Chrona. "Soul…I'm sorry…Ragnarok and…everything."

Ragnarok popped out of Chrona's back and rested on the kid's head. "Hey, I only said what you were thinking!"

"I wasn't thinking that!"

"Oh, come on, you were so thinking that!"

"I was NOT!"

Ragnarok popped a small bubbly finger up Chrona's nose. "Yes you WERE!"

"No. I. Wathn't!" Chrona cried out in an unusual nasally voice.

Soul sighed, squeezing the bridge of his nose. _Patience…Patience…_

"You stupid hoe! I'm gonna cover your eyes all day long and make sure you bump into every wall!"

Soul began rubbing his temples.

"No! I don't know how to deal with bruises!"

And then pressed his eyes.

"Nah, nah."

And then pulling at his hair.

"Ujyuu…"

"WILL THE BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP?!" Soul finally cried out, fingers digging into his scalp.

Chrona and Ragnarok stared at him for a considerable amount of time.

"Whoa man, you got some _issues_." Ragnarok finally spoke, breaking the awkward tension.

An agonizing scream could be heard within a three-mile radius.

* * *

Soul sighed, leaning back on the bench. "This is a better atmosphere. Better than that dungeon." He leaned his head back to watch the sky, on that bench, in that basketball court where everyone would gather to play.

Chrona nodded slowly, quickly glancing at Soul several times before gathering enough courage to ask the question. "What…do you want…from me?"

Soul leaned his head a bit further back, closing his eyes when a cool breeze came and swept over him. "Chrona, what are you feelings on Maka?" He turned his head just enough to glance at Chrona.

Chrona was visibly shocked, taken aback. "M-Me?" Chrona hadn't ever seriously thought of feelings or anything of the sort, especially not feelings for Maka, "I-I don't…know…"

Soul glared at Chrona for some time before heaving himself off the bench, and running a couple steps ahead before turning his back to the basketball court. "Remember the last time we played basketball?" He stuffed his hands in his pants pockets and slouched, as usual, head bowed to the ground. "And I showed you how to make a shot?"

"M-Mm…"

"Hold the ball steady in your dominant hand, using only the other to support the ball. Imagine the ball reaching that basket, and when you do finally shoot, arc your hand to arc the ball." Soul paused for a moment, "It's almost guaranteed to at least hit the rim."

Chrona's lips pursed, eyebrows furrowing as Chrona delved into deeper thought.

"But sometimes it's a little scary to take that shot," Soul slid his hands out of his pockets and let them heavily flop to his sides. "If you miss that shot, the ball won't ever come back, someone else will take it. And if you do make that shot…"

Soul imagined a basketball in his hands, heavy in his arms, rough to the touch. The ball would slice through the air; glide through the rim through those ropes bounce over and over again.

"Will…it come back to me?" Soul whispered, eyes wide in near realization. The ball in his mind bounced away from him, to another person's hands. All it needed to do was fly out of his own hands for him to lose everything.

"Soul," Chrona leaned forward, voice low. "…Do _you_…Maka…"

Soul gritted his teeth and looked up at Chrona. "I think so—no—I'm sure…I'm sure that I do…_like_…her."

Chrona leaned back on the bench, overwhelmed by what was happening, and how everything was falling apart.

* * *

Chrona leaned against the door to their room and slowly stalked to the bed. Chrona grabbed the pillow and quickly rushed to the Mr. Corner, falling onto the ground. Chrona hugged the pillow tightly, forehead pressed into the pillow, into the knees.

"Hey, Chrona, you're just gonna let that punk take that boring-panties girl?"

Chrona allowed a long pause before answering. "…But…" The ball wasn't in Chrona's possession to begin with.

Ragnarok sighed, "I still don't see what's so appealing about that washboard. If you were going for a hottie I'd say that Tsubaki chick is the ultimate prize. Cute face, great cook, kind to a fault, killer legs, a hot ass, and the best thing of all: giant boobs. That Patty girl or that Liz girl are pretty good, but they're kinda crazy you know what I mean?"

"Ragnarok," Chrona's head titled just enough so one eye glared at Ragnarok dangerously.

"Don't give me that look!" Ragnarok waved his fist in a threatening manner.

Chrona merely sighed and pulled away from the pillow. "I like Maka. A lot." Chrona tried out those five words, feeling them roll off Chrona's tongue. "I like Maka…I like Maka…I like you…Maka…I…" Chrona hiccupped, "I…like…you…Maka…"

_"…the ball won't ever come back…"_

"_Will…it come back to me?"_

"Maka…" Chrona's face buried into the pillow, heart hurting, throat burning, hands shaking…

These shaky, weak hands could never hold something so precious.

Ragnarok leaned over Chrona's head and once again sighed. "…Fuck, Chrona. Just fuck."

* * *

Soul sighed, leaning his back against his room's door. He stalked to his bed and jumped backwards onto it.

He lifted his hands up in midair, hands formed as if they were holding a basketball. He could feel it…light and gentle, soft to the touch and everlasting. With a charming smile, strange green eyes, and soft gray-blonde hair.

Soul tightened the grip on the imaginary ball, and was just about to let his arms drop before the door knocked.

"Soul?" Maka knocked once more, "Soul? I know you're in there."

Soul didn't reply. He turned onto his side, one arm cushioning his head, the other arm outstretched in front of him. It hovered above the bed, as if the ball was still in his hand.

"Soul…I'm sorry. I was acting like a real jerk back there."

"That's not true…" Soul whispered, closing his eyes.

"Please come out? There are still plenty of leftovers from dinner."

Soul tightened his eyes.

"…I'll see you tomorrow morning."

Soul shot up from the bed, "Maka," he nearly cried out, opening the door. To his surprise, Maka was still standing there in front of the doorway.

"Heh, I knew you would open the door." Maka grinned.

Soul blinked several times before smiling himself. "So…leftovers, right?" he leaned onto the doorframe, hands stuffed in his pants pockets.

These small yet strong hands could just hold on a bit longer. If not, forever.

_**(SE)**_

**YAY triangle relationship! I'm not sure how to end it, BUT I have one pairing twist. **

**Can you guess that pairing twist? Can you? CAN YOU?!**

**I wrote this when I got like…3 hours of sleep. This is what AP US History does to you! ZING!**


End file.
